The Best One Yet - 🤙 “High School Millionaire” — Cal AI’s crazy acquisition. Iran’s drone game. McDonald’s cringe-burger. +New Song car-crash

Episode Date: March 4, 2026

McD’s CEO went viral for awkwardly eating its new burger… but it smells like a 90s marketing McTastrophe.Iran’s $20k drones cost us $4M to shoot down… It’s financial asymmetry, affecting stocks.Cal AI counts your calories from food pics… and its founders are in high school.Plus, a connection between Spotify and car crashes… When new music drops, accidents pop.$MCD $SPOT $SPYBuy tickets to The IPO Tour (our In-Person Offering) TODAYArlington, VA (3/11): https://www.arlingtondrafthouse.com/shows/341317 New York, NY (4/8): https://www.ticketmaster.com/event/0000637AE43ED0C2Los Angeles, CA (6/3): SOLD OUTGet your TBOY Yeti Doll gift here: https://tboypod.com/shop/product/economic-support-yeti-doll NEWSLETTER:https://tboypod.com/newsletter OUR 2ND SHOW:Want more business storytelling from us? Check our weekly deepdive show, The Best Idea Yet: The untold origin story of the products you're obsessed with. Listen for free to The Best Idea Yet: https://wondery.com/links/the-best-idea-yet/NEW LISTENERSFill out our 2 minute survey: https://qualtricsxm88y5r986q.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_dp1FDYiJgt6lHy6GET ON THE POD: Submit a shoutout or fact: https://tboypod.com/shoutouts SOCIALS:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tboypod TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@tboypodYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@tboypod Linkedin (Nick): https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicolas-martell/Linkedin (Jack): https://www.linkedin.com/in/jack-crivici-kramer/Anything else: https://tboypod.com/ About Us: The daily pop-biz news show making today’s top stories your business. Formerly known as Robinhood Snacks, The Best One Yet is hosted by Jack Crivici-Kramer & Nick Martell. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This is Nick. This is Jack. It's Wednesday, so meet Jay Wednesday. March 4th. And today's pod is the best one yet. This is a T-Boy. The top three pop business news stories you need to know today. I'm sorry, Jack.

Can you remind me again, what's the only day of the year that is also a command? That would be March 4th, Nick. Oh, it's today. It's today. Yeah, it is. You got to listen to the rest of the episode. You're going to absolutely love it. And if you don't, it's time for you to March 4th.

Jamie Diamond will spank you. So, Jack, three fantastic stories for today's pod. What are we got on the T-Boy? For our first story, stocks fell on Tuesday on hints that the war in Iran will last longer than you think. One reason, Iran's got $20,000 drones that cost us $4 million to shoot down. For our second story, McDonald's just launched their biggest burger ever. It is so big, their CEO is afraid to bite it. True story, McDonald's biggest burger ever might repeat its biggest failure ever.

And our third and final story, if you take a photo of your lunch right now, the Cal AI app will tell you how many calories, Are you in it. Cal AI. This app is doing 30 million bucks a year in revenue and just got acquired. The wildest part, this AI app was developed by high schoolers. High school seniors. But Yetis, before we hit that wonderful mix of stories. Like a final project they did it before prom. Jack, I love the stories. Love the mix. What do we got? Yeties, on Friday, Harry Stiles drops his new album. Okay, first album since 2022. He's a big Yeti highly anticipated from Mr. Harold. But Nick, on that day, on this Friday, this Friday, You might want to avoid the roads.

Yeah, because besties, when a big artist drops a big album, you are more likely to get into an accident. It's true. Harvard Medical School first saw, sorry, heard the correlation in the street versus streaming data. Follow us on the numbers. If Spotify stream search 40% on a particular day, it's likely because there's a big album that dropped.

And guess what else happens on those same days? Traffic injuries rise by 15%. Boo-boos in your Subaru's, Yiddies. Beyonce launches a new banger. you lose a bumper. I'm sorry, could you just repeat all the, what we just said, Jack? On big album drop days by the big superstar musicians,

you stream more, but some car skids more. We're talking 40% more streaming equals 15% more accidents. If Kendrick drops a disc track this weekend, there's gonna be a six car pile up. Oh, Jack, the next time, BTS drops some fresh K-pop, we're gonna take the subway. But Nick, this is basically a story about distracted driving.

So if you do need to listen to BTS, don't reach down on your phone, tell Siri to play it for you. Yeah, if you must listen to Harry Styles on a Friday, buckle up this time. And wear a helmet. It's a sign of the times. It's not drinking and driving, streaming, and then crying. Jack, let's in our three stories. Fifteen years before this song, two boys from the Northeast met in the dorm.

They had an idea to cause a cultural storm. It's the best one yet, but the best is an norm. Jack Nick, that's it. I don't even think they need to practice. 50%, that's a fat tip. Tea Boy City on your at list. If you know, you know, because we're ready to go. We can't wait no more, so just start the show.

Start the show. First, a quick word from our sponsor. Our first story. Investors just got signals yesterday that the war in Iran could last a long time. And you know what? They didn't like it. Because Iran's low-cost drones are weapons of mass extension. Weapons of mass extension.

Now, Yeti's on Monday. Honestly, Jack and I were checking the markets and we're kind of surprised by what we saw, right, Jack? The stocks ended the day slightly higher on Monday, the first day of trading after the war in Iran began. Yes, some might have called this buy-in-the-war dip, BWD. But on Tuesday, reality settled in, that this is not going to be a weekend-long war. So stocks opened down by 2% on Tuesday morning. In part because President Trump said he will do whatever it takes to win in Iran, adding that wars can be fought forever. That's a direct quote.

Plus, you got mixed messages on the goal of this war from different parts of the administration. So investors are thinking, we may have to settle in for this one. But another reason that this war might last longer than expected is what Nick and I are calling Iran's weapons of mass extension. Weapons of mass extension. Besties, we're talking about Iran's $20,000 drones that require $4 million of missiles for us to shoot down. It's weaponized financial asymmetry.

Yes, it is. And these are not the drones we were talking about at the Winter Olympics. Yeties, you've probably seen videos of Iran. retaliation. You've actually heard these drones in those videos. Exactly. What you've heard is the loud, buzzing, triangle-shaped kamikaze drones flying through the air even over Dubai. It's called the Shothead 136, and they are one-way drones designed to crash into things for maximum damage. The price of these puppies, well, they're going to cost you just $20,000 to make. And Iran's been making them in mass production. Basically, they're Iran's Model T, but for munitions. They're not particularly

fast or nimble drones, so they're easily shot down. We have a 90% interception rate of these drones. But the way Jack and I think of it, these drones are less hawks and eagles, but they're more like flies and mosquitoes. You can kill them because they're not that quick, but when they bite you, they hurt. Oh my God, yes, they do. But Nick, our fly swatter in this analogy, it's the Patriot missile that we use to shoot them down. And Jack, what does that cost us? Four million dollars each. That's right, besties. Neutralizing Iran's tiny weapon costs us $200,000. times more than it costs them. Now, we should clarify, there are more effective anti-dron defense systems out there, but none in this region of the Middle East. So, Tehran has launched 1,200 of

these drones in just three days, and we've shot 1,200 Patriot missiles just to intercept them. Our bill is much bigger than their bill. And whoever runs out first, that's the side that's going to be the most vulnerable. Yiddies, we've been so worried about weapons of mass destruction when it comes to Iran, understandably. Okay, but Jack, these $20,000 drones, they can blow a $4 million hole in the U.S. war budget like that. That is financial asymmetry. And this kind of warfare is a big reason that Ukraine has lasted as long as it has against much bigger Russia. Bringing us full circle, that's why we call them weapons of mass extension. So Jack, what's the takeaway for our buddies wondering about the end of an Iran war?

What's most likely to end the Iran war? It might be stock markets. Now, Eddie's, we have seen this before. Stock markets dip after a brand new Trump policy. And once stocks have fallen far enough, and Trump can't tolerate it any of. more, he reverses that policy. Think of the stories we've covered together. The phase one China deal in his first term, reversing the Liberation Day tariffs, the framework for a future deal on Greenland. In each of those cases, it was Trump reversing his policy because stocks had fallen too much. As Wall Street puts it, it's the Trump put, and Wall Street now trades on it. It's a cousin of the Taco

trade that Trump always chickens out. Well, if things go badly in this war, oil could keep spiking and stocks could keep on falling. So the Trump put, it could be the president simply pulling out of Iran and touting his killing of the Ayatollah as a victory. The only question that remains, besties, though, is reversing a war as easy as reversing a tariff. For our second story, McDonald's newest burger is so big. Their CEO is embarrassed to eat it.

He just doesn't know how to eat it. I know. I feel bad for the guy. I love the guy. They didn't teach him in business school. But we've actually seen the McDonald's Big Archburger before from a business school case study on Catatessen. Astrophy. Oh, Yetis. Millennials, we say the word awkward. Gen Z used the word cringe. But you can use both of those words for the latest video from the official McDonald's Instagram account.

Because in it, Chris Kemsensky, the sveled little V-neck sweater, loving CEO, tries to bite into McDonald's new burger, which has a thousand and twenty calories. It's so big. He strikes me as more of a soup guy, Jack. You know, I love the sweater, but it's giving kale. It's definitely giving kale. First of all, when he introduced the Big Arge Burger, he called it a product, not a burger. That's your first problem right there, I got to stop you. Then he promised that he's really going to eat this thing for lunch. For real. It's like no one's saying you're not. Don't protest too much. We hope you eat it for lunch, buddy. You need more meat on those bones. But it got worse. He didn't know how to hold it. He didn't know there were onions in it. And

then he took the tiniest little bite as his taste test. Basties, this CEO taste test video has gone viral because it looks like a hostage situation. The marketing team was holding his family hostage with a ransom demand that he eats this thing on air. Now, Vessies, this is probably not the reason why McDonald's stock fell by 2% yesterday. Although it does appear that McDonald's is kale-loving CEO has a psychological fear for the company's own food. I'm sorry, Jack, I think you mean the word product. That's product. Don't call your food product and don't call the people who eat it. Users. Stick that on an apron. Jack, but yet he's, let's not rough up Ronald McDonald too hard over. Although that was a lot of fun, Nick.

I always had a good time, too. Chris, we would love to have you on the show. We're fans. Because McDonald's business, it's actually all up, and it is all to the right, baby. Remember three years ago, the $20 Big Mac? McDonald's was getting a lot of hate during hot inflation summer. Exactly, Jack. But then McDonald's did a value menu pivot. They spent the next three years apologizing, cutting prices, and getting some high visibility promotions out there.

And it worked. McDonald's stock rose in 2020. 23, 24, 25. It was at an all-time high until last week. You see, his burrito bowl prices were popping. McDonald's nugs, they were a dropping, baby. So for McDonald's management, they were probably thinking mission accomplished. Yeah. We didn't just survive inflation. We thrived. Our stock's had an all-time high. Surreak Green's loss, Mickey D's gains. And that is why Ronald now has the McConfidence to go back on the offense and dip into the protein maxing trend. Hence the Archburger. It's huge. Nick, the burger alone,

is $12 here in Vermont, and 17 if you had soda and fries. Jack, could you sprinkle on some more nutritional context, please? 1,020 calories is the burger alone, 65 grams of fat and 53 grams of protein. I'm going to need more context, please. That's twice as much fat and protein as the Big Mac, which was, I thought, their biggest thing. Jack, that is more fat and protein than in a pony. So the Big Archburger, it's David Barr for people who don't actually work out. Now, Vesties, this Big Arch Burger is the biggest burger in McDonald's history,

on all that data. But it reminds us of the biggest failure in McDonald's history. Oh, Chris, coughed twice if you need our help. Oh, he coughed in that video. Yeah, he was crying coconut water tears, Jack. So Jack was the takeaway for our buddies over at McDonald's. The Big Arch is already a case study in catastrophe. Yeti's wild story here. This Big Arch Burger is eerily similar to a metastrophe from 30 years ago taught in business schools today. We're talking about the Arch Deluxe Burger. In 1996, McDonald's introduced the Arch Deluxe. It was marketed at having grown-up taste, and it was the product of years of culinary research. It was 40 years ago. They did a $150 million ad campaign that featured

kids getting grossed out because the burger was too sophisticated for children. I guess they were targeting adults, but it became the first McFlop. Nobody bought the burger. In fact, it alienated people. That's right. That original Super Burger was just too expensive, too many calories, and calling it sophisticated, just insulted regular McDonald's customers. It's also a bad idea to show crying kids when you're targeting families to come into your store. Doesn't work. And yet, here we are. 30 years later, and McDonald's is introducing a similar burger with a similar name. The 1996 Arch Deluxe and the 2026 Big Arch, both dwarf the Big Mac in price and calories. Sure, business is all about timing. Maybe 1996 was just

the wrong time and 2026 is the right time. All right, Jack, it's a fair point, but investors seem skeptical. The stock McDee's, it's down since that Big Arch announcement. Because we've seen the Big Arch Burger before. This is a case study in catastrophe. No, no, no, Jack, this product is a case study in catastrophe. Now a quick word from our sponsor. For our third and final story, this one's wild. The latest AI business to be acquired. It's called Cal AI, the calorie counting app, making 30 million bucks a year in revenue. Here's how a group of high school students, high schoolers, built an AI app that just got acquired by private equity.

Now, yetis, we'd like to introduce you to a guy named Zach Yadigari. Last year, this 17-year-old senior applied to 15 top colleges, but you know what? He hardly got into any of them. I mean, you only have to get into one. That's a fair point. But still, this Long Islander from Roslyn had a 4.0 GPA. We don't know his SATs. We don't.

But we know his extracurriculars were impressive. Yes, we do because the summer before senior year, Zach launched a startup. Cal AI, as in calorie AI, a food tracking app. You take a photo of what you're eating and the AI estimates how many calories are in there. They got a database of 20 million things that you eat. An avocado, 235 calories. Turkey sandwich from Lenny's, that's 763 calories. That big slice of greer, the size of your fist?

Oh, baby. More calories than the Big Archburger, Nick. Yeah, it's like 1108 calories. You see, Bessie's calorie tracking apps have existed before, but they all required you to type every item that you're eating. It's a pain. Friction is the enemy. So Zach used AI to digest the image and spit out the number so you don't have to type it. Which reminds us of rule number 303 from T-Boy Business School.

If you can let people be lazier, you are solving a market problem. And it could lead to millions for you. Now, the co-founders of this app got into the University of Miami, and they've continued scaling the business from there through a whole bunch of Facebook ads. Boom, 15 million downloads later. they have $30 million in revenue last year as people are paying the $30 a year subscription. We repeat $30 million of revenue. Sit down, stand up, and class dismissed over there. But here's the news. Cal AI just got acquired by its bigger rival, My Fitness Pal.

My Fitness Pal, which owns My Run, Matt My Ride. Used to be owned by Under Armour, now they're owned by private equity. And they saw that Cal AI was climbing up the App Store rankings to hit number five in the health category. It was neck and neck with My Fitness pal. So they bought their competition. But Jack, I'm sorry, pause the pod. Can we talk about the bigger news here? Did you say high school musical? No, but I like where you're going, Jack.

Sorry, high school millionaires. High school millionaires. Because Bestie's Cal AI is one of the youngest exits we have ever seen. One of the founders is so young. His LinkedIn title simply says 18 years old. Okay, the other founder is so young. He posted on LinkedIn that his 18-year-old bank account had just $9 in it, just allowance money before this deal.

And now they're probably worth millions. This is a one and a half year old business doing $30 million a year built by teenagers. Wild detailed, the Cal AI team does their weekly stand-up meetings on Sunday night. Not because they're hardcore, though, it's because of homework. Sunday was the only time they weren't in class or like bad practice. Yeah, or lax practice most likely with those Roslyn guys. Here's the key yeties. These guys understood the attention economy.

Savvy marketing helped them get downloaded more than the competition. which was offering the same service. It's unclear now if they'll remain enrolled at the University of Miami now that they've sold their company. I'm just assuming one of them asked Giselle to prom after this deal. So, Jack, what's the takeaway for our buddies over at Cal AI? The newest flex in VC is small. Yeah, it's a funny thing Jack and I noticed.

For years, the biggest flex in Silicon Valley was how big you were, the size of your team. Founders bragged about their huge hiring numbers because that signaled a healthy business and healthy fundraising. Lately, we're noticing the opposite. We're noticing founders brag about how small they are. Because that signals they're cutting edge use of AI, which is more impressive in this market.

Now, Bessie, these four co-founders didn't vibe code Cal AI alone, but impressively, just three other employees were employed by them, plus a few contractors. And they did it all before social studies class, after homeroom, and mid, like, hallway makeout, while they're like, get to class, it's five past three. Sticking in the yearbook. Yet these high schoolers just created an app that now earns $5 million per an employee.

And this big exit reveals that Tiny is now mighty. In Silicon Valley, the big new flex is small. Jack, could you whip up the takeaways for us for Civeche Wednesday? Iran's $20,000 drones cost us $4 million each to shoot down. They're weapons of mass extension. So what could end the Iran war? The stock market. That would be another Trump put, another taco trade.

For our second story, McDonald's is protein maxing. It launched the biggest burger ever. It's twice the size of the Big Mac in both calories and price. It's also a copy paste of McDonald's 1996 marketing macastrophe. And our third and final story is CalAI. It's the latest AI company to get acquired and it was founded by high schoolers. Because the big flex and venture right now isn't big head counts. It's small.

But Yeties, this pod's not over yet. Here's what else you need to know today. First, wild new product. A smart glasses siren. That's right, a warning app about smart glasses. It's like a radar. It is. The new app is going viral because it alerts you if someone nearby is wearing smart glasses. It's called nearby glasses. The story was just covered by TechCrunch. Because if somebody's wearing meta-ray vans, they could be recording you with video and you don't even know it. But this app sends you a notification if they are. And second, yesterday we did a story on the big beef between Anthropic and the U.S. Department of Defense. And Jack and I told you how OpenAI sooped in after the Pentagon blacklisted Anthropic. Well, get this.

New data says that ChatsyPT uninstalls jumped by 295% after they signed that deal with the Pentagon. Wow, that is a 4x pop and unsubscribes of ChachyPT. Yesterday, we asked you for your comments. Can ethics be a competitive advantage? Can morals be a moat? Well, the early download data suggests yes. People are picking their AI principles. And finally, we got an update for the Yeties on.

on vacay right now. The Vatican, they're closing parts of the Sistine Chapel for cleaning your sweat. Apparently, our perspiration floats upward, right? Nick, isn't that the story here? Yeah, I'm not a geologist, Jack, but Michelangelo's fresco masterpiece will be saved. However, salty air does drift up when you're walking through the Sistine Chapel. It's a good thing our armpits are facing downward, not upward. Oh, no, that's saved a lot of art, Jack. That has saved a lot of art from Arsvitzin. Now, time for the best fact yet. This one's sent in by legendary Yeti, Dylan Steinfeld from lovely Atlanta, Georgia. Push and point. Here we go, Jack. Nick and Jack, I went to Pittsburgh recently, and while you

might know it is the Steel City or the city of Bridges, the locals told me I had to visit the National Aviary or the Bird Zoo. I went and I was blown away. A few things you should know. It has over 500 animals. It's the largest indoor aviary in the U.S. In 1993, it was awarded national status by Congress, and it remains the only official national aviary in the U.S. next time you're in Pittsburgh, make sure to pay a visit. Is there any higher compliment than a Yeti visiting another city and then sending us an audio, best fact yet about something they learned while they're traveling? Great law passed by Congress to make this our official national aviary.

Also, Pittsburgh, if we do a live tour next year, when we do a live tour next year, should we go to Pittsburgh? Absolutely, should be on the agenda, Jack. We'll make a stop at this aviary. Drop a comment if you know the venue. Yeties, you are looking fantastic. They, Jack, you are glowing. but we have one request if you are loving our product.

If you are loving this podcast product, we would love a five-star rating and review. We love reading all of them, and they help us grow the show. They help us grow in the rankings. We're talking to you, users. Yes, we are users. If users enjoy the product,

then a five-star rating helps grow that product. I'm actually going to listen to this episode. I really am right now. Celebrate the wins. Jack and I. We'll see you tomorrow. And before we go, a special shout-out. Tieti Joe Gorowski, who this isn't a birthday.

This is a kidneyversary. Because 15 years ago, he donated his kidney to his dad in Chicago. Joe, great guy. And a happy 40th birthday to Yeti Danis Binai over New York City, also celebrating the launch of their new business, Lemon Health AI, startup for longevity. Happy 30th birthday to Derek Liu in San Francisco. And Prusa Patel, happy 31st birthday down in Canton, Ohio. Happy birthday to Advita Karthi Kedin, in Kirkland, Washington.

Kaysenia Vasquez, happy 33rd birthday over in Queens. Happy birthday to Coco Flageolet, the Frenchman living in the presidio of San Francisco. Not possible. And Ramya, the Yeti I just ran into on my way to the studio in San Francisco. Great to meet you. Thanks so much for being a bestie. Happy 31-year wedding anniversary to Joe and Brenda Mulero in Lugaf, South Carolina. Not too shabby. And Miranda is the co-worker of Lily Gavazov, who correctly guessed our T-boy trivia about Netflix

on yesterday's pot. The blind side. Not finding Nemo. And a special shout out to all the Paralympians competing in the games in Milan. The Paralympics just began. And to anyone else, celebrate something today.

Make it a T-Boy. Celebrate the product. This is Jack. Nick and I both on stock of Spotify. This is Nick. This is Jack. It is Wednesday, Sevice, Wednesday.

November. March 4th. February. Honestly, I was like, I was on the diving board. I was already, I head was already over. I had it was already over. All right, Jack, one sec, here we go.

Three, two.